Printed circuit board

ABSTRACT

A methodology for connecting device components with circuitry located at different levels and orientations relative to one another is described. First circuitry can be located on a multi-plane rigid circuit board where the multi-plane rigid circuit board can include at least one flexible member sharing a common substrate with the multi-plane rigid circuit board that extends from a body portion of the multi-plane rigid circuit board. The flexible member can include traces used to convey power and/or data and an interface coupled to the power and/or data traces. The flexible member can be deflected or twisted to connect first circuitry on the body portion of the multi-plane rigid circuit board to second circuitry associated with another device component.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of and claims priority under 35 U.S.C.§120 to commonly owned and co-pending U.S. application Ser. No.12/694,166, entitled “PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD” by McClure et al., filedJan. 26, 2010, that, in turn, claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) toU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/292,739, entitled “HANDHELDCOMPUTING DEVICE” by Ternus et al., filed Jan. 06, 2010, both of whichare hereby incorporated by reference herein.

This patent application is related to and incorporates by reference intheir entirety the following co-pending patent applications:

-   -   (i) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/694,085, entitled        “HANDHELD COMPUTING DEVICE” by Ternus et al., filed Jan. 26,        2010;    -   (ii) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/694,162, entitled        “ASSEMBLY OF A DISPLAY MODULE” by McClure et al., filed Jan. 26,        2010;    -   (iii) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/694,200, entitled        “COMPONENT ASSEMBLY” by McClure et al., filed Jan. 26, 2010;    -   (iv) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/694,168, entitled        “DISPLAY MODULE” by McClure et al., filed Jan. 26, 2010; and    -   (v) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/694,083, entitled “EDGE        BREAK DETAILS AND PROCESSING” by Sweet et al., filed Jan. 26,        2010, that is, in turn, a continuation in part of U.S. patent        application Ser. No. 12/580,934, entitled “METHOD AND APPARATUS        FOR POLISHING A CURVED EDGE” by Lancaster et al., filed Oct. 16,        2009, that takes priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S.        Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/249,200, entitled        “COMPLEX GEOGRAPHICAL EDGE POLISHING” by Johannessen, filed Oct.        6, 2009.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Described Embodiments

The described embodiments relate generally to computing devices such aslaptop computers, tablet computers, and the like. More particularly,circuit board connection schemes are described.

2. Description of the Related Art

In recent years, portable computing devices such as laptops, PDAs, mediaplayers, cellular phones, etc., have become small, light and powerful.One factor contributing to this reduction in size can be attributed tothe manufacturer's ability to fabricate various components of thesedevices in smaller and smaller sizes while in most cases increasing thepower and or operating speed of such components. The trend of smaller,lighter and powerful presents a continuing design challenge in thedesign of some components of the portable computing devices.

One design challenge associated with the portable computing device isthe design of the enclosures used to house the various internalcomponents. This design challenge generally arises from a numberconflicting design goals that includes the desirability of making theenclosure lighter and thinner, the desirability of making the enclosurestronger, and making the enclosure more aesthetically pleasing. Withinthe enclosure, power and data connections need to be established betweenthe various internal components with considerations of the packingefficiency and ease of assembly.

Typically, the portable computing device will have one or more enclosurecomponents where each enclosure component has some external profile witha ‘thickness’ that is relatively constant. Various internal componentscan be distributed within the external profile of each of the enclosurecomponents. To improve the packing efficiency, the internal componentscan be located at various heights within the thickness of each enclosurecomponent. Numerous data and power connections can link the internalcomponents. Since two internal components can be situated at differentheights, the data and power connections are needed to traverse theheight difference to link the two components.

A connection between two internal components of different heights isoften accomplished using a flexible cable often referred to as “flex.”As an example, flex can be used to connect two circuit boards atdifferent heights where each circuit board includes a connector that iscompatible with connectors on each end of the flex. The use of flexrequires extra connectors and more assembly steps, which increasescosts. In view of the foregoing, there is a need for improved internalcomponent connection schemes.

SUMMARY OF THE DESCRIBED EMBODIMENTS

This paper describes various embodiments that relate to systems,methods, and apparatus for enclosures for use in computing applications,such as the assembly of portable computing devices. A methodology forconnecting device components with circuitry located at different levelsand orientations relative to one another is described. In oneembodiment, first circuitry can be located on a multi-plane rigidcircuit board. The multi-plane rigid circuit board can include at leastone flexible member. The flexible member can include traces used toconvey power and/or data and an interface coupled to the power and/ordata traces. The flexible member can be deflected or twisted to connectfirst circuitry on the multi-plane rigid circuit board to secondcircuitry associated with another device component. The flexible membercan be formed as an integral component of the multi-plane rigid circuitboard, i.e., the flexible member and the multi-plane rigid circuit andthe flexible member share a common substrate.

In one aspect, a first printed circuit board and an enclosure for aportable computing device can be provided. The first printed circuitboard can include a flexible member extending from a body portion of thefirst printed circuit board. The flexible member can includes a numberof traces and a free end of the flexible member can include a firstinterface to the traces. The first printed circuit board can be securedwithin an interior portion of the enclosure. A first fastener can besecured across the flexible member such that a surface of the firstfastener is in contact with a side of the flexible member including thetraces. A portion of the fastener can be insulated to prevent shortsfrom occurring across the traces.

The free end of the flexible member can be deflected such that theflexible member is bent along a first line near the first fastener. Thefree end of the flexible member can be secured using a second fastenerwhere the flexible member is bent along a second line near the secondfastener. The first and second fasteners can tend to localize stressesresulting from deflecting and/or twisting the flexible members to anarea on the flexible member between the two fasteners. After it issecured, the end portion of the free end can be located at a differentdepth within the enclosure than the body portion of the first printedcircuit board and/or at a different angular orientation to the bodyportion. A second circuit board including second circuitry can beconnected to the first interface to allow data and power to betransmitted between the second circuit circuitry and first circuitrylocated on the body portion of the first circuit board via the traces onthe flexible member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The embodiments will be readily understood by the following detaileddescription in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein likereference numerals designate like structural elements, and in which:

FIGS. 1 a and 1 b show a side view and a top view, respectively, of aportable computing device with three unconnected internal components inaccordance with the described embodiments.

FIGS. 2 a and 2 b show a side view and a top view, respectively, of aportable computing device with three internal components shown in FIGS.1 a and 1 b connected using a multi-plane rigid circuit board inaccordance with the described embodiments.

FIG. 3 shows a top view of a multi-plane rigid circuit board inaccordance with the described embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a method of manufacturing a portable computerdevice using a multi-plane rigid circuit board.

DESCRIBED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to representative embodimentsillustrated in the accompanying drawings. It should be understood thatthe following descriptions are not intended to limit the embodiments toone preferred embodiment. To the contrary, it is intended to coveralternatives, modifications, and equivalents as can be included withinthe spirit and scope of the described embodiments as defined by theappended claims.

In particular embodiments of the devices described herein, one or moreof internal components can include a multi-plane rigid circuit board.The multi-plane rigid circuit board can include at least one flexiblemember. The flexible member can include traces used to convey powerand/or data and an interface coupled to the power and/or data traces.The multi-plane rigid circuit board can be installed within a computingdevice and then a free end of the flexible member can be deflectedand/or twisted and secured at a location that is above or below a levelwhere a remaining portion of the multi-plane rigid circuit board issecured or in a different plane from the remaining portion of themulti-plane rigid circuit board. The interface on the free end of themember can be coupled to a printed circuit board such that power and/ordata can be transmitted between circuitry residing on the multi-planerigid circuit board and circuitry residing on the printed circuit boardvia the flexible member. In some instances, the use of multi-planecircuit board can be used to replace flex cables in the design of theportable computing device.

As an example, a portable computing device can have a main logic board.The portable computing device can have an enclosure and the main logicboard where the main logic board is designed to reside at a certaindepth within the enclosure. The main logic board can be a multi-planerigid circuit board. Thus, the main logic board can include one or moreflexible members including power and/or data traces and an interface tothe power and/or data traces. The main logic board can be installed at afirst level within the portable computing device and then the one ormore flexible members can be secured at locations above or below thelevel of the main logic board or in a different plane than the mainlogic board. The traces on the flexible member can be used to transmitpower and/or data between the main logic board and another componentassociated with the portable computing device, such as but not limitedto a SIM card, a wireless interface (e.g., an antenna), a multi-pin dataconnector, a multi-pin power connector or a combination multi-pin dataand power connector.

The circuitry associated with the additional component can be located ina plane that is above or below a body portion of the main logic boardand/or is not parallel to the main logic board. The flexible member onthe main logic board can be used to traverse the depth change as well asan angle change between the body portion of the main logic board and alocation of the circuitry associated with the additional component. Ingeneral, the methodology used herein can be used to connect twodifferent circuitry components located in planes of a different depthwhere the planes can be at an angle relative to one another. Themethodology can be applied within a computing device, portable or not,and is not limited to the example of a connection between a main logicboard and other circuitry within a computing device.

The use of multi-plane rigid circuit boards is described with respect tothe following FIGS. 1 a-4. FIGS. 1 a and 1 b show a side view and a topview, respectively, of a computing device with three unconnectedinternal components where one of the components is a multi-plane rigidcircuit board with two flexible members. FIGS. 2 a and 2 b show a sideview and a top view, respectively, of a portable computing device withthree internal components shown in FIGS. 1 a and 1 b connected using thetwo flexible members of the multi-plane rigid circuit board inaccordance with the described embodiments. FIG. 3 shows a top view of amulti-plane rigid circuit board with three different flexible members.FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a method of manufacturing a portable computerdevice incorporating a multi-plane rigid circuit board.

FIGS. 1 a and 1 b show a side view and a top view, respectively, of aportable computing device 100 with three unconnected internal componentsin accordance with the described embodiments. The portable computingdevice 100 includes an enclosure 102. The external profile and theinternal profile of the enclosure 102 is that of a rectangular box. Theenclosure 102 can have a thickness, where different thickness heightsare denoted by the ‘z’ dimension 110. A length and width of theenclosure 102 can be denoted by the x and y dimensions, 116 and 118,respectively.

The rectangular profile including its relative thickness is provided forillustrative purposes only. In various embodiments, the external profilecan include various surfaces, such as rounded surfaces that differ froma pure rectangular profile. Further, the internal profile can be shapedvery differently from the external profile. The internal profile canhave steps and curved surfaces that vary from location to locationthroughout the interior of the computing device where a nominalthickness between the external and internal profiles can vary throughoutthe enclosure.

Various devices and their associated components can be distributedthroughout the enclosure and linked together, such as but not limited toantenna components, external data and power interfaces, mechanicalbutton components, audio components, display components, touch screencomponents, processor and memory components and battery components.Typically, devices and their associated components include printedcircuit boards (PCBs) with associated connectors that allow thecomponents to be linked to one another via a connection scheme of sometype. The connection scheme can allow power to be delivered to acomponent, if required, and can allow for communication between variouscomponents to occur.

In FIGS. 1 a and 1 b, three PCBs, such as, 104, 106 and 108, are shown.The PCBs, 104, 106 and 108, are shown unconnected to one another. In oneembodiment, PCB 104 is a main logic board and includes a CPU component112. The PCBs, 104, 106 and 108, can be constructed from a material,such as a plastic, and other suitable materials useful with printedcircuit boards.

In FIG. 1 a, the PCBs, 104, 106 and 108 are located at different heights110 within the enclosure 102. The first PCB 104 is located at a firstheight. The second PCB 106 and third PCB 108 are located at height abovethe first PCB 104. Further, the height of PCB 106 changes along the ydimension 118 while the heights of PCB 104 and PCB 108 are constant inthis direction, i.e., the boards lie on a constant z-plane.

Each of the PCBs, 104, 106 and 108 can be secured or anchored to anunderlying support structure that is coupled to the enclosure 102. Theunderlying support structure is generically illustrated as box 101. Thesupport structure can include frames, fasteners and posts that can varydepending on the design of the portable computing device 100.

In FIG. 1 b, prior to the connections being formed between the boards,the PCBs, 104, 106 and 108 can overlap with one another in the x, 116,and y, 118, dimensions. PCB 104 can include a center portion with tworectangular flexible members, 124 and 126, extending from the centerportion of the PCB 104. Thus, in this example, PCB 104 can bemulti-plane rigid circuit board. In the unconnected state, a portion ofmember 124 can be disposed below and can overlap with PCB 106 and aportion of member 126 can be disposed below and can overlap with PCB 108as shown in the top view of FIG. 1 b.

The flexible members 124 and 126 can be made of the same material as theremaining portion of the multi-plane rigid circuit board 104 where board104 can be a single integral piece including integral traces, i.e., themembers 124 and 126 are not formed separately and then coupled to theboard 104. In some embodiments, the material composition used in 104 canbe adjusted to make the entire board 104 and hence the flexible members124 and 126 more flexible. In other embodiments, the materialcomposition of the flexible members 124 and 126 and the area proximateto where the flexible members 124 and 126 extend from the board 104 canbe adjusted to improve flexibility of the members and the board in theseareas. Thus, portions of the board 104 can be more rigid than otherportions of the board 104.

Member 124 includes an interface 128 b to the power and/or data traces120 that generally aligns with an interface 128 a to circuitry on PCB106. Member 126 includes an interface 130 b to the power and data traces122 that generally aligns with an interface 130 b to circuitry on PCB108. The interface pairs, (128 a, 128 b) and (130 a, 130 b) are shownslightly off set from one another because they are unconnected. Thedeflection of the flexible members 124 and 126 in the z-dimension 110 toenable a connected state can shorten their length in the x, 116, and y,118, dimensions respectively. When deflected, the interface pairs can bemore closely aligned, i.e., less off-set in the x-y plane as is shownand described with respect to FIGS. 2 a and 2 b. Possible deflectiondistances in the z-dimension can be up to 15 mm or greater.

As described above, members, 124 and 126, of PCB 104 can include traces,120 and 122, respectively. The traces form conductive paths on the PCB104 and allow power and/or data to be transmitted between components onthe PCB 104. The traces can be laid down when the over-all circuitry ofPCB 104 is formed. Typically, the traces are a thin line of metal, suchas copper. The thickness of each trace can vary from trace. Forinstance, a trace that carries power can be thicker than a trace thatcarries data.

In general, one or more traces can be located on the members 124 and 126and embodiments are not limited to the three traces shown in theFigures. Further, the number of traces can vary from member to member.For instance, member 124 can include traces that lead to a 30 pinconnector and thus, can have 30 traces when all of the pins areconnected. Member 126 can include traces that lead to a 10 pin connectorand thus, can have 10 traces when all of the pins are connected. Seventyand one hundred pin connectors are available for certain devices andmembers 124 and 126 can be configured with the number of tracesnecessary to provide connections to these types of connectors. Thenumber traces can vary according to the devices that are beingconnected, such as but not limited to a main logic board and a Sim cardor an external data connector.

FIGS. 2 a and 2 b show a side view and a top view, respectively, of aportable computing device with three internal components shown in FIGS.1 a and 1 b connected using the two flexible members, 124 and 126, ofthe multi-plane rigid circuit board in accordance with the describedembodiments. Referring to FIG. 2 b, in a connected state, an end of themember 124 is deflected in the z dimension 110 and twisted at an angle132 such that the end of the member is secured in an orientation that isproximately parallel to a bottom surface of board 106. The amount oftwist along the member 124 varies to allow it to reach angle 132 at itsend. Thus, traces 120 on the member 124 are also bent and twistedthrough a range of angles until the angle 132 is reached.

The member 126 is bent at an angle 134 relative to the z-plane of theremaining portion of board 104. An end portion of member 126 is bentthrough a second angle 135 such that the end portion is parallel to aportion of the surface of board 108. Thus, the traces on 122 on member126 are also bent through these two angles.

In this example, board 108 and the remaining portion of board 104 areproximately parallel. Thus, the angles 134 and 135 are proximatelyequal. In other embodiments, the angles 134 and 135 can be different.For instance, board 108 can be rotated up or down through an axis in thex dimension as indicated by the arrows in the FIG. 2 a, such that angle135 is greater than or less than angle 134 (depending on the directionand angle of rotation) to enable the end portion of member 126 to beparallel to a portion of surface 108.

Between the bend points at which angles 134 and 135 are shown, themember 126 is shown is being straight. This orientation is provided forillustrative purposes. Between the bend points, the member 126 can bebowed up or bowed down and possibly slightly twisted if board 104 andboard 106 are not parallel to enable proper alignment of an interface onthe member 126 and an interface on board 108. Thus, the orientation isnot limited to being in a straight orientation as shown in the figure.

In a connected orientation, interface 128 a is on a lower surface ofboard 106 and interface 128 b is on a top surface of flexible member124. In various embodiments, during assembly, a body portion of board104 and the end of member 124 can be secured in their respectiveorientations. The body portion of board 104 can be secured first andthen the end of member 124 can be secured or vice versa or both can besecured simultaneously. After the end of member 124 is secured (theremaining portion of board 104 may or may not be secured at this point),the board 106 can be secured such that a successful connection is madebetween the interfaces 128 a and 128 b. In another embodiment, the board106 can be secured first and then the end of member 124 can be slidunder board 106 to form a connection between the boards. After aconnection is formed, the member 124 can be secured in place.

In another example, in a connected orientation, interface 130 b is on anunderside surface of the end of flexible member 126 and interface 130 ais on a top surface of board 108. In various embodiments, duringassembly, end portion of member 126 can be secured in place and thenboard 108 can be slid underneath to form a connection. Alternatively,board 108 can be secured in place and then the end portion of member 126can be placed over the board 108, connected and then secured.

Referring to FIG. 2 b, proximate to bend locations, fasteners can beused. For example, fasteners, 125 a and 125 b, are shown securing member124 and fasteners 125 c and 125 d are shown securing member 126. Thefasteners 125 a-125 d can include holes and posts, such as 127, forallowing a fastener, such as a screw, to be placed through the fastener.A portion of the fastener can be in contact with the traces, such astraces 120 and 122. When a portion of the fastener is in contact withthe traces, it can be composed of a non-conductive material, such asplastic, to prevent shorts across the traces. A remaining portion of thefastener can be comprised of another material if desired, such as ametal. For instance a piece of metal with the mounting holes can besecured over a piece of plastic in contact with the traces.

The fasteners 125 a and 125 b can be placed in contact with the flexiblemembers to define regions of bending on the flexible member 124.Similarly, fasteners 125 a and 125 b can be placed in contact withflexible member 126 to define region of bending. When the fasteners 125a and 125 b or 125 c and 125 d are secured, most of the bending stresscan be confined on the region of the flexible members, 124 or 126,between the fasteners such that stress is not transferred to theremaining portion of board 104 or to the areas where interfaces 128a/128 b and 130 a/130 b are connected. Using fasteners in this way canprevent damage to board components, such as components on board 104 andprevent the connections between boards 104-106 and 104-108 from comingloose. Thus, the fasteners can be considered “stress isolators,” in thatthe fasteners tend to localize or isolate the stress to particularareas, such as to a particular area of the flexible member.

In a particular embodiment, a surface of the portion the fasteners, suchas 125 a, 125 b, 125 c and 125 d, can be rounded. The rounded surfacecan provide a radius of curvature for the bending of one of the members,such as 124 and 126, and prevent a sharp edge from pressing into thetraces and possibly damaging the traces. Further, the radius ofcurvature can possibly reduce stresses on the traces that occur asresult of bending. For example, an underside of fastener 125 c can berounded to provide a radius of curvature for the bending of member 126through angle 134. The boards 108 can also be rounded for a similarpurpose. For instance, an edge of board 108 can be rounded to provide aradius of curvature for the bending of the free end of member 126through angle 135.

In particular embodiments, the traces on the flexible member can beorganized in layers. For example, a number of trace layers, such as 10trace layers, can be provided from near the top surface of flexiblemember 124 to a bottom surface of flexible member 124. One or moretraces can be located in the in-depth layers. The trace layers can bepopulated when a multi-plane rigid circuit board, such as 104 is formed.

When the flexible member 124 is bent, a portion of the member 124 can beplaced in compression and a portion can be placed in tension. Forexample, when member 126 is bent upwards near fastener 125 c, a topportion of the member 126 is placed in compression and a lower portionof the member 126 is placed in tension. Within the member 126, such asnear a center layer, the compressive and tensile forces are proximatelybalanced. In a bending beam, the layer where the forces are balanced isoften referred to as the neutral axis. Similarly, in twisting, there canbe regions that are compressed or stretched more than other areas andregions where forces are balanced. Areas where compressive and tensileforces are balanced or nearly balanced can be good locations to locatetraces within a flexible member, such as members 124 and 126.

Referring to FIG. 2 b, a side view across member 124 is shown to exposea number of layers between the top and bottom surface of member 124. Aneutral axis 124 c where compressive and tensile forces are proximatelybalanced is depicted. The neutral axis 124 c is provided for thepurposes of discussion only and is not meant to be an accuraterepresentation of the location of the neutral axis.

On the portion of the secured members between the fasteners, such asbetween fasteners, 125 a and 125 b, on flexible member 124, more stresscan be located near the top and bottom edge layers of the flexiblemember, such as in location 124 b near the bottom surface, as comparedto the center area 124 a of the flexible member. The traces arranged onthe member 124, such as traces 120 a and 120 b, can be of differentthicknesses. For instance, a trace carrying power can be thicker than atrace carrying data. The thicker traces can tolerate more stress. Duringdesign of a multi-plane rigid circuit board, such as 104, the traces onthe flexible members can be arranged such that thicker traces arelocated in regions anticipated to experience high stress and thinnertraces can be located in regions anticipated to experience lowerstresses as a result of bending. For example, the stresses on member 124can be higher at the edge 124 b than at the center 124 a under bending.If trace 120 a is thicker than 120 b, trace 120 a can be placed closerto the edge 124 b than trace 120 b.

The shape of a flexible member can be altered if it is does not have abig enough area of low stress to accommodate all of the traces thatrequire a low stress level. For instance, if there were too many tracesto fit in a center area 124 a of member 124 that will experience lowstress upon bending, then width of member 124 can be widened to increasean area of low stress near the center 124 a. Then, additional traces canbe routed through the low stress area. As another example, the thicknessof the flexible member, such as 124 or 126, can be increased to possiblyincrease a number of suitable layers in the low stress areas.

As a result of variable bending and twisting along a length of aflexible member. The areas of low stress can vary along a length of themember. For example, as a result of twisting at one end of member 124the area of low stress can be closer to a particular edge or surfacethan at the other end. The traces can be designed to follow a path oflow stress along the member. Thus, traces do not necessarily have tofollow a straight path parallel to the edge of the flexible member alongthe length of the member. For instance, the traces can follow a curvedpath along the length of a flexible member. In the design process,stress distributions for various deflections of a flexible member can bedetermined and these stress distributions can be used to develop tracepaths along the flexible member.

In particular embodiments, because of the stress between the fastenerson a flexible member, it may be desirable not to place any circuitrycomponents other than the traces in between the fasteners. In otherembodiments, if the stress is not too great it can be possible to placeadditional circuitry components in this area. To allow the fasteners toapply a force evenly across the flexible members and because the regionnext to the fasteners experiences high bending stresses, it may bedesirable not to locate circuitry other than traces proximate to wherethe fasteners are secured and particularly beneath the fasteners.

FIG. 3 shows a top view of a multi-plane rigid circuit board 136 inaccordance with the described embodiments. The board 136 includes threeflexible members, 138, 142 and 146. Two of the flexible members 142 and146 extend from a body portion 137 of the board 136. A third member 138is within the body portion 137. Each flexible member, such as 138, 142and 146 can be associated with multiple bend lines and include an endportion located near the free end of the flexible member. Bend lines 140a and 140 b are depicted for member 138 and bend lines 144 a and 144 bare depicted for member 142.

An end portion 143, below bend line 140 b, on the free end of member 138is shown. The end portion 143 can include an interface that connects topower and/or data traces located on the member 138. The free end ofmember 138 can be deflected up or down as well as twisted and secured atanother location. Then, the interface on the free end can be coupled toother circuitry, such as another board, to establish power and dataconnections.

A bend line does not have to be necessary located at the intersectionbetween the flexible member and the body portion 137. In variousembodiments, the bend line can be located a distance away from theintersection. For example, bend line 144 b is located on flexible member142 above the intersection between the member 142 and the body portion137.

Two bend lines are depicted for members 138 and 142. In one embodiment,a flexible member, such as 138, 142 or 146 can be bent along only asingle bend line. In other embodiments, a flexible member can be bent atmore than two locations along the member. The bend lines that aregenerally perpendicular to an edge of the flexible member are depicted.Nevertheless, in further embodiments, one or more diagonal bend lines,such as bend line 145 can be used. Finally, although flexible membershave been shown as rectangles of a constant width other shapes arepossible in various embodiments. For instance, member 146 includes awidened end portion 148 where the width of the portion 148 is wider thanthe rest of the body of the member 146. In other examples, the flexiblemembers can have curved or tapered portions (not shown).

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a method 149 of manufacturing a computerdevice, such as portable computing device, using a multi-plane rigidcircuit board. In 150, the bend line locations and stress distributionsacross of a flexible member of a first circuit board can be determined.The first printed circuit board can be a multi-plane rigid circuit boardas previously described. In one embodiment, the first printed circuitboard can be a main logic board for the portable computing device. In152, the trace locations on a flexible member of a first printed boardcan be determined. The trace locations can be arranged on the flexiblemember based upon the determined stress locations. For instance, thickertraces can be placed in high stress areas and thinner traces can beplaced in low stress areas. If the low stress areas are not large enoughto accommodate all of the thin trace lines then the flexible member canbe resized and steps 150 and 152 can be repeated. Next, the firstcircuit board can be manufactured. In one embodiment, the first circuitboard can include markings on the flexible member indicating proximatelocations where bending is to take place on the flexible member duringassembly.

In 154, the first printed circuit board can be secured to a supportstructure associated with an enclosure of the portable computing device.In 156, a first stress isolator, which can be a fastener, can be securedacross a flexible member associated with the first printed circuit boardproximate to a first bend line associated with the flexible member. In158, a free end of the flexible member can be deflected and/or twistedsuch that an end portion of the flexible member is aligned in apreferred orientation. The preferred orientation of the flexible membercan be at different level and/or in a different planar orientation thana portion of the first printed circuit board.

In 160, a second stress isolator, which can be a fastener, can besecured across the flexible member proximate to a second bend line tofix the end of the flexible member in the preferred orientation. Ifnecessary, additional fasteners can be used to secure the end portion inthe preferred orientation. In 162, a first connection interface on theend the portion of the member in the preferred orientation can besecured to a second connection interface on a second printed circuitboard. Via traces on the flexible member, power and/or data can betransferred between the first circuit board and the second circuitboard. In a particular embodiment, the first circuit board can be a mainlogic board and the second circuit board can be associated with one of aan external pin connector interface, a Sim Card, an antenna, a memoryunit, a display, an audio device, a touch screen, a button or some othertype of mechanical controller (e.g., a volume slider or volume disc).

The advantages of the invention are numerous. Different aspects,embodiments or implementations may yield one or more of the followingadvantages. The connection schemes described herein allows for a firstcircuit board with a flexible member. The flexible member can includetraces for carrying power and/or data and an interface to the powerand/or data traces. A flexible member can be deflected and secured at afirst level within the portable computing device and a remaining portionof the first circuit board can be secured at a second level. Via theinterface on the flexible member, a second circuit board secured at thefirst level can be coupled to the first circuit board. One advantage isthat power and/or data connections between two circuit boards securedwithin a portable device at different levels can be linked without theuse of flex. The many features and advantages of the present inventionare apparent from the written description and, thus, it is intended bythe appended claims to cover all such features and advantages of theinvention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, the invention should not belimited to the exact construction and operation as illustrated anddescribed. Hence, all suitable modifications and equivalents may beresorted to as falling within the scope of the invention.

1. A method of manufacture comprising: providing a first printed circuitboard and an enclosure for a portable computing device, said firstprinted circuit board including a flexible member extending from a bodyportion of the first printed circuit board and sharing a commonsubstrate with the first printed circuit board wherein the flexiblemember includes a plurality of traces and wherein a free end of theflexible member includes a first interface to the plurality of traces;securing the first printed circuit board within an interior portion ofthe enclosure; securing a first fastener across the flexible member suchthat a surface of the first fastener is in contact with a side of theflexible member including the plurality of traces; deflecting the freeend of the flexible member such that the flexible member is bent along afirst line proximate to the first fastener; securing the free end of theflexible member using a second fastener wherein the flexible member isbent along a second line proximate to the second fastener such that anend portion of the free end is located at a different depth within theenclosure than the body portion of the first printed circuit board;connecting a second circuit board to the first interface to allow dataand power to be transmitted between the second circuit board and firstcircuit board via the plurality of traces on the flexible member; anddetermining a location of the plurality of traces relative to oneanother on the flexible member wherein thinner traces and thicker tracesare routed along the flexible member and wherein thicker traces arerouted across areas on the flexible member with stress values that arehigher than the stress values where the thinner traces are routed on theflexible member.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:determining a stress distribution along the flexible member when it isin a deflected position.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the bodyportion of the first printed circuit board is proximately aligned with afirst plane and wherein the end portion of the flexible member isproximately aligned with a second plane and wherein the second plane isat an angle relative to the first plane.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the first circuit board is a main logic board and wherein thesecond circuit board is associated with an external pin interface or aSIMM card.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the second plane is rotatedat an angle relative to the first plane.
 6. The method of claim 1wherein the first fastener or the second fastener includes a roundedsurface configured to increase a bending radius of the flexible memberproximate to the first fastener or the second fastener.
 7. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the first fastener and the second fastener areconfigured to concentrate the bending stresses in an area of theflexible member between the two fasteners.